Victor Osimhen is fit again, and the timing is near perfect. Five weeks after a groin strain forced him off against Başakşehir, the Super Eagles striker came off the bench on Friday and set up the final goal in Galatasaray's 3-1 win over Kasımpaşa. Next up is Barcelona at RAMS Park in the Champions League on Tuesday.
He played only the last quarter of an hour. It was enough.
Galatasaray were down to ten men by then. Lucas Torreira had been sent off after a VAR review. Jesurun Rak-Sakyi had cancelled out Abdülkerim Bardakcı's header from just before the break, and the home side looked like dropping points. Osimhen came on in the 77th minute, according to the club's official match report. Barış Alper Yılmaz restored the lead at the death. Then, deep in stoppage time, Mario Lemina finished off a move that ran through the Nigerian, and the club credited Osimhen with the assist.
It was his first appearance since 4 September. That night he limped off after 33 minutes of a 3-2 win over Başakşehir, and scans showed a strain in the right adductor. He missed the Champions League opener in Lisbon, where Sporting came from behind to win 3-1.
A tall order on Tuesday
Barcelona arrive flying. Hansi Flick's side have won all eight of their La Liga games, the latest a 3-0 win over Getafe. They opened their European campaign by putting five past Feyenoord.
Flick has done his homework. “Galatasaray have a fantastic striker like Osimhen, they really have a great squad,” the Barcelona coach told Turkish outlet Ahaber. Then came a line for the home crowd. “We will be playing in the world's loudest stadium.”
Osimhen knows this opponent. His 75th-minute equaliser earned Napoli a 1-1 draw with Barcelona in the 2023-24 last 16, although the Italians went out in the second leg in Spain.
“The Barcelona match will be a tough game, but to be honest, like my teammates, I'm also very excited for this match,” he told the fan channel Peşindeyiz Galatasaray.
Will he start? That is the big call. He has had barely 15 minutes of football in five weeks.
What it means for the Super Eagles
For Nigeria, the good news is simple. He is playing again.
The Eagles managed without him through a bumpy window. They beat Madagascar 2-1 in Uyo on 25 September. Four days later came a 3-0 defeat in Guinea-Bissau, and on 6 October a 3-3 friendly draw in Russia. That loss in Bissau has turned the AFCON 2027 qualifying campaign into something far less comfortable than the Glass House would have wanted when the draw was made, and the next two games arrive quickly. Tanzania visit Uyo on 11 November. The return leg in Tanzania follows on 15 November.
Some rust is inevitable. The groin strain is also a reminder of how fragile these muscle injuries can be, so the minutes Galatasaray hand him in the coming weeks matter in Abuja too.
Tuesday will tell us plenty.
If Osimhen can trouble a Barcelona defence that has barely been tested in Spain this season, Nigeria's most important striker will head into November in the right frame of mind, and the question of who leads the line against Tanzania will not take long to answer. For the background, read our report on Osimhen's road back before the Kasımpaşa game, or relive his equaliser for Napoli against Barcelona.
This article was most recently revised and updated 21 seconds ago
